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Social Media and Voiceover: How does It Effect Your Business?

April 8, 2019 by Laura Schreiber

Ever feel like you are doing 20 things at once ?!

Any working mom can tell you that there are not enough hours in the day, so social media serves multiple purposes in our life depending on what form you are talking about. And any working mom can tell you that often when we are doing one thing we are thinking about the other 10 things we have to get done at the same time. From enabling a small business owner like me to let potential clients know about my business to staying connected with friends and voiceover industry friends from all over, to staying on top of current trends and hot tips, social media across the board is really important. If you were to ask me how social media directly effects my voiceover business, I would tell you that it depends on the specific genre, so here is a point by point break down of how the most relevant genres relate to my voiceover business.

Twitter

A few years ago a prominent voiceover talent was offering a class with another industry insider on Twitter marketing. You’ll see as I go on why I leave their names out. I loved the class. I revamped my twitter strategy based on what I learned and was determined that I, too, would make upwards of $20,000.00 after the class. I did every single thing that we learning with gusto. I posted a minimum of 3 times a day every day for 2 years. I never gained more than 1200 followers and I did not book one single job from twitter. I also hired a marketing person to help with my twitter endeavor. Again, we yielded no results. As I book mostly commercial voiceovers, I do not think that folks are looking to hire talents like me on twitter.

Instagram

I love Instagram for personal use but I have also never booked work from Instagram. My Instagram account is a business one. All of my postings are “brand” relevant. I have tried for several years to post here and to connect with industry folks that I am curious about. I also hired a hot young intern who had a pulse on Instagram. Nothing. Then I hired a marketing consultant. These so called experts did not generate any better results than I did. So, I have a lot of fun at night before bed looking at pictures of jewelry and cute dogs but I do not believe that the people who want to hire me directly are looking for me on Instagram.

Facebook

I love Facebook and always have. I love it both as a way to keep in touch as so, so many voiceover talents and production people seem to hang out here. I also love to post and share projects and blogs on Facebook. While I have never booked an actual job from Facebook, I have formed the foundation of some amazing friendships that exist off line. I have met so many fantastic people. I also love the groups that I am in. Especially because we use so much audio equipment in voiceover, I find that the support of these Facebook groups is key to my success. For example, if I am having questions about ipDTL or Source Connect, I just hop onto the group and ask. Also, I love the Voice Peddler’s Tech Tuesdays. Others are always so genuinely helpful and insightful.

LinkedIn

Working side by side with my Dad while on vacation… a real plus of life as a solopreneur!

Now this is a platform where I have gotten quite a few clients! I love connecting with folks from all over the world in all different industries. Perhaps it is because we are all definitely talking about work on LinkedIn, I have made professional friends and booked solid jobs in genres from Radio Imaging to eLearning and everything in between. I am certain that because LinkedIn’s platform make’s it so easy to post samples of voiceover work and connect to our website, potential clients can get a real feel for the service that I provide. I find that the time that I spend on LinkedIn is extremely valuable. For years I had the professional membership but now, with almost 5,000 contacts, I have the basic membership and I am very pleased with it.

Summary

So across the board the different forms of social media platforms play a different role for me as a solopreneur. In truth a love Pinterest, and spend a lot of time making pages for my house or my nails, but I have not found a way to make it relevant for my business as of yet. I also do use YouTube a lot, but it is typically either to repost work that I have completed or to create videos that will enhance my blogs and help clients and potential clients get to know me. And at the end of the day, that is really what it is all about. Even when I am not directly booking work on genres like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, if it is helping the community get to know me as a person and as a creative that it is worth the time and the energy. I’m not so complicated, I’m a working mom who loves my kids, jewelry, getting my nails done, and walking my dog; so if folks take that away from my post than they get it. And if they understand that I put my heart into everything that I do then the really get it:)

Super Bowl Video Narrations: Casting Outside The Box

January 27, 2019 by Laura Schreiber

Just a Philly Girl…

Everyone knows there is only one type of Eagles fan. Growing up in Philadelphia, I remember dreading the ride home from Sunday school every week. It did not matter whose dad was driving carpool, we would be listening to the Buddy Ryan Show the entire ride which was upwards of 30 minutes. My friend Candace can tell you those rides felt like an eternity. Football was a major part of my childhood, but I do not recall in those years ever hearing women voices as part of the dialogue. I also was not taken to games or included in the pre-or post-game banter. It all kind of happened around me. Still, I felt and continue to feel tremendous pride and spirit for our teams. How can you not when there are so many game day rituals?

Now, years later, I am married to a New Yorker (gasp) who is such a sports aficionado that he will have sports on the computer while he has sports on tv on mute while listening to sports on the radio. Harlan seems to love to watch videos on youtube and ESPN footage of old great plays talking about why they were amazing. Again, All. Male. Voices. So…. Let’s spice things up and try this…

https://youtu.be/S1QyjwHrBBI

Dramatic Female Announcer For Super Bowl II (https://youtu.be/S1QyjwHrBBI)

Connected Female Narrator

The music is the same. The footage is the same. The content remains EXACTLY the same. The vocal quality is attached, connected, emotive, strong, confident, proud. But there is one major contrast. The voice of the professional voiceover is now a conversational, millennial narrator. Tradition aside, with more women who audition, the more women are likely to get these roles. But it is not just about numbers. When voiceover jobs are posted, often male narrators are sought for specific roles. Or, when both male and female voices are considered, if there is one female voice and ten male voices, the odds still favor a male narrator. As Britni de la Critiz from the Ringer explains, “women need to have champions in order to succeed in these roles.” With women like Randy Thomas announcing ABC news Nightline for the first time, hope for professional voiceover actors is on the horizon. For the first time ever, Amazon rolled out some all-female football casters. This is certainly a step in the right direction.

The Winds of Change

Still, it is clear that multiple changes need to happen for women to be considered for these typically male dominated roles. First, those doing casting need to be willing to cast a broad net and listen to auditions from a wider range. Next, voiceover talents have to be bold and be willing to shake things up when submitting their reads. We cannot be afraid to standout, we must be eager to shine and be heard so that our addition stands apart from the others. Our vocal quality can be nothing short of outstanding so that those castings are just choosing the best read. Perhaps if the casting agent hears 100 reads one way and you zag you get cast.

The Main Event: Super Bowl Sunday

As a professional voiceover actor, some of us are lucky enough to have a super bowl spot air. There are also related spots on the radio, as YouTube bumpers, and in the days following the big game. But, we all know that across America, come came day, in homes across the country family not only watch the came with eager anticipation, they watch the much anticipated Super Bowl commercials! What is the viewing audience looking for? Often we want a pang of emotion. A shocking plot twist. A good laugh. A thrill. Is this beginning to make you think of what we go after in our voiceover demos? Hmmm… See, for a professional voiceover actor, every single day we try to bring out the best in the scripts that we are given, but on this day, the day of all days, these commercial spots are truly incredible. And for the voiceover talents who have been smiled upon by the casting gods and are lucky enough to have some part in the quintessential American holiday we all love, their creativity can flourish.

I don’t know where you will be this Super Bowl Sunday, but I will be in my house surrounded by my family and wonderful neighbors. Even though my beloved birds did not make it this year, every year we host a great party. We have lots of delicious food, a lot of our friends, and our family. And as a girl whose Sundays have revolved around football for more winter’s than I’d like to admit, I can say with certainty that as much attention will be paid to the commercial viewing as to the game next Sunday.

It is my hope that if I revisit this topic in a few years there are a lot more women involved in all levels of sports casting and narrating such videos on a regular basis! If the Eagles can make it to the Super Bowl, it doesn’t seem like such a long shot…

The New Frontier In Voiceover: The 6 Second Youtube Bumper Ad

January 6, 2019 by Laura Schreiber

https://youtu.be/nV-cchP6QxY

6 Second YouTube Bumper Ads with Laura Schreiber (https://youtu.be/nV-cchP6QxY)

You Have 6 seconds… Go!

Times sure are a changin’. When we were kids, we didn’t have a tv in our bedrooms. My parents loved watching tv with us and felt strongly that it was a family activity so the tv was in the family room. We also had a “little tv” as we called it in the kitchen. As it ran on an antennae and only had the main networks, if we were sick or they were out on a Saturday night, we had the special treat of having the little tv moved to our room! But, my sister and I were expected to enjoy it together. I remember watching Saturday morning cartoons in bed with Julie on occasion, and loving the lineup including “the Smurfs,” “The Snorks,” and “The Gummy Bears.” Those were special times.

Now it doesn’t matter so much that my husband (who grew up without a tv, gasp!) and I don’t have tv’s in our twins’ rooms, because they are amongst the 1.3 BILLION people who, according to Merchdope, are partaking in the watching of 5 BILLION videos every day! Typical of their generation, my twins have laptops, iphones, and ipads and can use any and all of these devices to watch YouTube.

And what is popping up on every, single video they watch? I am sure that you have seen those 6 second ads, that used to be 3 seconds, that you can’t skip. Those are called YouTube Bumper Ads and they are changing the landscape of voiceover. As a professional voiceover actor, I know have the exciting task of telling a story, showing emotional range, communication the essence of a brand, drawing in a customer, and connecting with the audience all in six seconds! I think folks who pursue a career in voiceover enjoy a challenge, and this new genre is just the next arena for us to dazzle our clients with our voiceover skill set. The YouTube Bumper presents all sorts of opportunities in marketing.

How big is this trend?

The trend of the YouTube Bumper Ad in voiceover is here to stay. Like in other commercial realms, marketing and ad executives strive to create a custom audience and based on the YouTube search can target a specific subset of viewers. Unlike commercials in other genres like television and radio, YouTube bumper are not skippable. With over 1 billion users daily, the permutations of groups and subsets of viewers to build brand awareness offers such vast potential with numbers never seen before all in one place! For example of what major brands are doing, Jon Lafayett of Broadcasting Cable explains “Busch used bumpers after a campaign that included the Super Bowl and saw double-digit lifts in both purchase consideration and brand awareness among viewers. The bumpers were made from extra footage shot while making the Super Bowl spot.” This echoes my experience as the professional voiceover talent. After being cast for the tv commercial, the new media usage was added on to my voiceover casting so that the producer could record all of the voiceover in one session. This allows for continuity in the marketing campaign and further brand awareness when the clients relate the voice across genres. The fact that the numbers were so impressive for Busch indicates the success of such strategies and the YouTube bumper is integral to a solid marketing strategy today in an economy that is shifting rapidly.

https://youtu.be/9zqLLXIOg1M

Laura Schreiber Wellness Wellpet Bumper (https://youtu.be/9zqLLXIOg1M)

Roots in Commercial World…

In terms of voiceover technique for the YouTube bumper, adjusting to this shorter segment, while surprising at first, comes naturally for those of us who book a lot of commercial work. As my bread and butter has been voiceovers for tv and radio commercials since I started my career, when these scripts are written well it is easy to pour your heart into them. Most voiceover actors have done short spots on demos or tags. A YouTube bumper, however, is very different than a tag. Aside from the length ( and a tag on a commercial can be even shorter than a bumper), a tag is offering either an ending plug for the brand or a last bit of information. In a YouTube bumper ad, a voiceover actor has to be compelling and have charisma in a flash. Supposedly peoples’ attention spans are becoming shorter and shorter because of the time we spend on electronics, so they are looking for these short engagements and it is our job as the voiceover talent to make that connection.

Predictions About Impact on Industry

I believe that the YouTube bumper ads are here to stay and as the viewership on YouTube increases exponentially so will the need for professional voiceover actors to voice these spots. I also believe that the industry will continue to produce the 15, 30, and 60 second traditional advertising commercials as well. As long as radio and television continue to exist and have relevance in society, brands will want a presence there and will need for a connection in their YouTube and traditional marketing campaign. And at the end of the day, any working mom can tell you, a lot can happen in 6 seconds!!

Super Bowl Video Narrations: Casting Outside The Box

The New Frontier In Voiceover: The 6 Second Youtube Bumper Ad

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